Scientific Advisory Team Members

Andrea Manni, M.D.
Professor of Medicine
Chief, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism
Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine
M.S. Hershey Medical Center

A leading expert on DHA Omega-3 fatty Acids, Dr. Manni is a clinician scientist with a career-long track record of preclinical and clinical breast cancer research. Over the last several years, he has led a multi-disciplinary research team testing the preventive efficacy against breast cancer of omega-3 fatty acids in combination with antiestrogens.

In collaboration with basic scientists, he has shown that the combination is superior to the individual interventions in reducing breast cancer in animal models. He has also led a recently completed clinical trial testing the efficacy of the antiestrogens Raloxifene in combination with Lovaza (the FDA approved formulation of omega-3 fatty acid) in reducing breast density, a biomarker of breast cancer risk, in postmenopausal women at high risk of disease. Based on his findings and other reports in the literature, he is now focusing specifically on the role of the Omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and its metabolites in reducing breast cancer incidence particularly in association with weight loss induced by dietary energy restriction.

Dr. Manni's expertise in omega-3 fatty acids research is well recognized in the scientific community as supported by publications in peer-reviewed journals and invitations to present his work at national and international meetings.

Did You Know?

There are more than 27,000 published studies on omega-3s.There are more human clinical studies on omega-3s than almost any other nutrient.

Dr. El-Bayoumy's research objectives are to understand the causes of select cancers in the United States and develop means for their prevention. From 2009 through 2014, his research laboratories have conducted extensive studies on the preventive role of omega-3 fatty acids against breast cancer. On May 25, 2014, based on the positive outcome of these studies, Dr. El-Bayoumy and Dr. Manni submitted a Program Project to the NCI aimed at understanding the role of a specific component of omega-3 fatty acid, namely docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and its active metabolites combined with dietary energy restriction in the prevention of breast cancer.

The proposed studies include basic mechanistic investigations in animals and application in human clinical trials. The critical role of DHA metabolites in cancer prevention was emphasized in their recently published correspondence (J. Natl. Cancer Inst., April 2014).

Traditionally, Dr. El-Bayoumy's laboratory takes leads from epidemiologic observations, examines these leads in their laboratory setting, and then translates the findings into clinical cancer prevention initiatives. Dr. El-Bayoumy was the first to introduce the term "molecular chemoprevention" as a guiding principle in the design of future clinical intervention chemoprevention trials (Mutation Res. 591, 224, 2005). In addition to his contribution to the fields of carcinogenesis and cancer chemoprevention, Dr. El-Bayoumy has served on numerous national and international committees such as WHO and IARC. He is on the editorial board of several scientific journals and has written 218 publications including 184 peer-reviewed manuscripts along with 34 book chapters and reviews.

John P. Richie, Ph.D.
Professor of Public Health Sciences & Pharmacology
Pennsylvania State University
College of Medicine
M.S. Hershey Medical Center

Dr. Richie is Professor of Public Health Sciences and Pharmacology at the Penn State University College of Medicine.

For over 30 years Dr. Richie has conducted interdisciplinary studies on the role of nutrition and oxidative stress in aging and cancer development with a particular interest in diet- and tobacco-related cancers.

In addition, he has collaborated closely with Dr. Karam El-Bayoumy and Dr. Andrea Manni on the impact of omega-3 fatty acids namely docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in the chemoprevention of breast cancer.

These studies have ranged in discipline from basic laboratory investigations and in vivo studies in laboratory animals to molecular epidemiology and clinical interventions.

Dr. Richie, together with his colleagues, has published over 100 papers in in the fields of oxidative stress, aging and cancer prevention, including studies on the basic mechanisms of redox regulation within cells, the role oxidative stress in cell signaling pathways and the role of dietary antioxidants in cancer prevention and delayed aging. Over his career, Dr. Richie has served as the PI on many NIH-funded R01 and P01 grants and has had extensive experience in both leading an active research group as well as collaborating with teams of investigators across the country.